


Let's Go Down to the Tennis Court, and Talk It Out Like, Yeah.

by MadMothMadame



Series: Friends are the Family You Choose [4]
Category: Tennis no Oujisama | Prince of Tennis, 幽☆遊☆白書 | YuYu Hakusho: Ghost Files
Genre: Anyone there, But miraculously still alive, Friendship, Gen, Hanging out all by myself out here, Hello again, Idk boys I guess, Lots of Working Out, Mild Angst, Slice of Life, Tennis, This one's short but I like it I guess, Who would have thought?, it's me again
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-18
Updated: 2020-03-18
Packaged: 2021-03-01 00:07:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,285
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23196037
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MadMothMadame/pseuds/MadMothMadame
Summary: A full week back alive, and nothing exciting to do yet.
Relationships: Echizen Ryouma & Urameshi Yuusuke
Series: Friends are the Family You Choose [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1482518
Comments: 10
Kudos: 74





	Let's Go Down to the Tennis Court, and Talk It Out Like, Yeah.

A full week back alive, and nothing exciting to do yet. Yusuke still hadn't bothered to go back to school yet. His mom said she was going to call the school and get him re enrolled, but he wasn't holding his breath. Instead, he spent his days soaking up the sunlight on his skin and enjoying the general hustle and bustle of being _alive_ again.

Finding ways to occupy his time had never been hard for Yusuke. He liked to let his mind wander as he prowled the street, occasionally coming across something or someone interesting. Nowadays though, he tended to end up at Ryoma’s place by the end of the day. He could usually find his friend being whooped up on at tennis by his father, a man Yusuke still wasn't sure what to make of. He didn't seem to have a problem with Yusuke’s presence, which was unusual, but whatever. He also didn't seem to mind him hanging out with Ryoma, which was in direct contrast to his experience with parents.

It was Sunday though, which meant that Ryoma would probably be home all day, so Yusuke decided to head over a little earlier than usual.

Nanako, Ryoma's pretty cousin, answered the door when he rang the bell. She, at least, had the typical reaction that most adults had around him. She took a step back, startled and looked a little afraid.

Yusuke did his best to act casual and not show that he was maybe a little hurt at the reaction. He had met her three times already. You'd think she'd get over the idea that he was gonna rob them or something by now.

“Hey, uh, is Ryoma here?” he asked.

She shook her head, still looking scared. “He's out with friends,” she replied.

“Oh,” said Yusuke, trying not to sound too put out. It was easy to forget that Ryoma had other friends. Lots of them.

“He just left an hour ago. He probably won't be back for a while…” she trailed off, looking distinctly hopeful that Yusuke wouldn't ask to wait around.

“That's okay,” Yusuke said, quickly. “I'll just come back some other time.”

“Eh!” Ryoma's dad said as he angled around his niece to see who was at the door. “Oh, good! Look, Nanako-chan, someone else to take Ryoma his lunch! There's no need to be hasty now. I'm sure Yusuke here wouldn't mind!”

Nanako looked mildly terrified as she stuttered and waved her hands up in front of her. “No, no! That's alright! I'm sure Urameshi-san had other things t-” she started.

“Nonsense!” Nanjiro interrupted. “Yusuke here would be more than happy to! I'll even lend him my bike, to make the journey faster.”

“Don't be so lazy, Oji-sama,” said Nanako, fear seemingly forgotten as she turned towards her uncle, sounding like Keiko in one of her worse moods. “Just because yo-”

“I don't mind,” Yusuke said, bringing their attention back to him. They both looked surprised, though Nanjiro’s expression quickly turned triumphant. 

“Excellent!” he said, “I'll go get it!”

The older man swanned off, his priest garb fluttering around behind him. Nanako scowled after him, before turning back to Yusuke.

“Really, Urameshi-san, you don't have to do this. I can have my Uncle do it. You don't need to trouble yourself.”

Shrugging, Yusuke stuffed his hands in his pockets.

“I don’t mind. Not like I have anything better to do.” Yusuke replied.

Nanako smiled at him for the first time.

“Regardless, it’s very thoughtful.”

Nanjiro returned, a hurricane unto himself, before Yusuke could respond.

“Here you go!” Nanjiro said, thrusting a bento at Yusuke. “The brat’s at the Tennis club in Hagashiyama. My bikes over by the gate. You can have the brat bring it home after.”

Then he vanished back into the temple. Yusuke shook his head at the older man, before tucking the bento under his arm and heading for the bike that was leaned up against the fence. 

Nanako followed him over, her hands clutched delicately in front of her.

“Thank you again, Urameshi-san.”

“You can call me Yusuke, you know.”

She looked surprised, but eventually smiled at him.

“Yusuke-kun, then. I will see you soon?”

Yusuke looked back at her, skeptical. For a woman who had been scared of him moments before, she sounded awfully sincere. She looked it too, though, so Yusuke just nodded at her as he took off on the bike.

He hadn't ridden a bike in a while. One of his mom’s hit-and-run boyfriends had actually stuck around long enough to buy him a bike for his eighth birthday. He'd been loaded, but an asshole, like most of them were, and he hightailed it soon after. Yusuke had kept the bike though, until his mom had sold it a year later because they needed the money.

He still remembered how to ride. He had always been good at it and was more than slightly reckless. He flew down the sidewalk, dodging pedestrians and other bikers, ignoring their curses behind him with a grin.

“Urameshi!” he heard as he flew by another biker. It made him pull up to a halt.

Looking over his shoulder, he saw a tall boy with spiky hair waving as he caught up. It was Ryoma’s friend. Yusuke vaguely recognized him from the day he’d died, and also when Ryoma had visited his body the first time. He had helped Kuwabara clean up the apartment.

“Hey, Urameshi! What's up?” the tall boy asked. He looked considerably friendlier than he had the first time they had met. If he wanted to play it casual, Yusuke could handle that.

“Nothing really,” he said as the other boy caught up with him, “Ryoma forgot his lunch. His dad asked me to bring it to him.” Pulling the bike up to a halt, he held up the bento Nanjiro had given him.

“I see,” the other boy said, “Well, that's convenient. I'm on my way to meet them. I'm running late, as usual,” he said, laughing and rubbing the back of his head.

“Looks like we're heading to the same place then. Mind if I tag along? I have no fucking clue where I'm going.” Yusuke said, even though he had a pretty good idea.

“Of course! The more the merrier,” he replied, before turning his bike back around and leading the way. 

His pace was significantly slower than Yusuke would have liked, but he supposed beggers can't be choosers.

“Do you play tennis, Urameshi?” the tall boy asked.

Yusuke scoffed. 

“Over my dead body,” he said. It was only when the other boy glanced at him sharply that Yusuke realized his word choice might have been a little ‘too soon’, given the circumstances. He quickly decided not to care though, and carried on, “I'll leave the sports to you and the kid. Gym class gives me hives.”

“But Ryoma said you met through tennis?” he asked, sounding genuinely perplexed. 

“Well, kinda? But he was the only one playing. It's a long story.”

“I see,” he said, sounding like he didn't, but Yusuke didn't elaborate. 

It didn't take them long to come up to the tennis complex. Yusuke had always thought of tennis as a “rich-man’s” sport, and the facility in front of him did nothing to dissuade him of that notion. The complex was massive and very well looked after, with trimmed landscaping and fresh paint.

They parked the bikes on the racks outside the main entrance. Nanjiro hadn’t given Yusuke a bike chain, so the other kid used his to loop between both tires to secure their bikes to the rack.

“I don’t think I ever got your name?” Yusuke asked, watching the taller boy work. 

“Huh?” he said, thinking back on his and Yusuke’s previous encounters. He realized the other boy was right.

“I’m Takeshi Momoshiro. I’m Echizen’s teammate at Seigaku.”

“I figured,” replied Yusuke. “I’m Yusuke Urameshi, but you already knew that.”

The other boy flinched a bit as he stood. He looked a bit ashamed. Yusuke wasn’t really sure why. He hadn’t meant anything by his words.

“About that,” Momoshirio said. “I owe you an apology.”

“For what?”

“I was a jerk when we first met. I thought you were someone who was going to hurt my friend and I overreacted. Can we start over?”

Yusuke didn’t really think Momoshiro had been all that out of order, and shrugged. “Sure, but it’s really no big deal. Everybody’s like that when they first meet me. I don’t mind.”

For some reason, that just made Momoshiro look sad. 

“Still,” he said, and offered his hand for a Western style handshake. “What’s we let bygones be bygones?”

“... Sure,” Yusuke said as he took the other boy’s hand. “Nice to meet you, Momoshiro. Call me Yusuke.”

“Yusuke,” Momoshiro agreed. “You have to call me Momo then.” 

Yusuke nodded and dropped the other boy’s hand. They went up the stairs and through the main doors. The lobby was just as nice as the exterior of the building suggested. There was an admin at the front desk. She looked up as they walked through, eyes lingering on Yusuke’s sneakers and loose tee-shirt. He grinned at her, just sharp enough that she decided not to comment. 

“Welcome to World of Tennis,” she said instead. “Do you have an appointment?”

“We’re meeting friends, actually. Coach Katō’s son and his friends?”

“Ah, yes,” she said as she stood. “Please follow me. They are out on the East courts.”

She led them outside to a bunch of tennis courts.

“That’s them, down there. It looks like one of them is playing one of our regulars, Sasabe-san.” 

Yusuke looked out onto the course just in time to see Ryoma blast a twist serve by the adult opposite him. 

“Your friend must be very good,” the admin said in the vague, detached way used by people who want to appear more interested in their job then they actually are. “Please enjoy yourselves.”

She headed back inside and left Momo and Yusuke watching the game. 

It was the kind of tennis Yusuke liked, the kind that was a fight, and one Ryoma was winning. 

They only watched a few more minutes before Ryoma’s opponent fell to his knees, claiming he had cramped up. From the look of agony on the old man’s face, he wasn’t kidding.

A familiar looking teenager ran out onto the court, yelling for his “pops”. Yusuke couldn't remember where he'd seen him before until he heard Ryoma tell the pair of them they “both should start over from the basics.”

Oh, yeah. It was that guy. Maybe Yusuke should have hit him harder. Yusuke thought for a moment about chasing them down and making sure the lesson stuck this time, but it was only a fleeting thought. Some people never learn, and given the speed with which they ran from the twelve year old, at least neither of their dignities had survived the second encounter intact.

A bunch of other kids, Ryoma’s friends, Yusuke assumed, rushed onto the court to crowd around Ryoma. Momo hopped the railing in front of them to race down the stairs and join them. Yusuke followed at a more sedate pace.

Having been reminded of his first meeting with Momoshiro, Yusuke was not all that enthusiastic about meeting Ryoma’s other friends. They all looked to be freshmen, but normal, timid, excitable ones, unlike Ryoma. They were the kind of kids Yusuke tried to avoid. Funnily enough, having kids throw their lunch money at him and run away screaming had gotten old after the first dozen times it had happened.

Ryoma waved at Yusuke, beckoning him over with his grin, but Yusuke just raised a hand in greeting and headed over to an observation area. He picked a bench to park it on. Leaning back, he kicked up his feet on the low fence in front of him and settled in, lighting a cigarette and closing his eyes.

He sucked the smoke into his lungs as he weighed the pros and cons of a nap, but the urge was just too tempting. He laced his fingers with the still burning cigarette behind his head and leaned back, basking in the afternoon sun.

It couldn’t have been more than five minutes before Ryoma came over and stood in his sun, like an asshole. Yusuke opened an eye and glared at him.

Ryoma smirked at him.

“Good morning,” he said.

Yusuke grunted and sat up. He took another drag off the cigarette and left it in his mouth so he could hand Ryoma the bento box he had hauled halfway across town. “Here,” he said around it.” Your cousin made you lunch. She was going to have your dad bring it to you. You’re welcome.”

Ryoma scowled at the mention of his dad, but shook his head at the bento box.

“No, thanks. Sakuno brought me lunch. Momo says it’s rude to refuse. You can have it,” he said. He sat down next to Yusuke and took a drink from his water bottle. Yusuke thought about refusing, but he hadn’t eaten much for breakfast besides a bowl of stale cereal, so he just nodded. 

Ryoma didn’t answer him, so Yusuke looked up through his bangs at the younger boy in question.

“There’s no smoking,” the freshmen said, blithely pointing to a sign not three feet from Yusuke, which may or may not have been why he picked the spot.

“So?” he drawled.

“So, they’ll give you cancer.”

“Ha!” Yusuke laughed, “As if that’s what will kill me.”

And now Ryoma was glaring at him.

Right. Too soon.

“Alright, alright, sheesh. You’re as bad as Keiko,” grumbled Yusuke, but he snubbed out the cigarette on the metal bench next to him and flicked the now useless butt towards the ‘No Smoking’ sign. 

He hit it dead on.

“You done playing already?” Yusuke asked, changing the subject as Ryoma, appeased, sat to settle next to him.

“For now. Momo’s the only one worth playing, and he’s busy showing off,” he said.

Yusuke looked down to the courts to find Ryoma’s description was accurate; Momoshiro appeared to be flexing his muscles for the other freshman while he played the coach. The coach let him showboat for a moment before blasting a serve by the sophomore, sending Momo sprinting. 

Yusuke snickered.

“What were your plans today?” Ryoma asked. Yusuke made a questioning noise. “Did you want to go running?”

“Maybe later. I was thinking about doing some strength training instead. It’s been a while since I’ve broken my own pull-ups record.” 

“Bet I can do more than you,” Ryoma said in a familiar challenging tone. Both Ryoma and Yusuke knew that that was extremely unlikely, but neither of them were the type to live down a challenge. 

“You’re on,” Yusuke said as he leapt up. Yusuke found a convenient tree that looked strong enough to hold them, and they were off. 

When their arms were shaking and their hands were sore, they moved onto sprints. When they were out of breath, they did some aerobic stretches. When they felt like rubber, they did some push-ups, then sit-ups, then handstands, then climbed some trees, then jumping jacks, then more sprints. Yusuke relished in the feeling of pushing himself. He was feeling haggard in the best of ways when they were done. Ryoma looked half-dead but was also sporting a satisfied grin. 

After they’d mostly caught their breath, Yusuke asked, “Wanna go see about lunch?”

Ryoma nodded and accepted the hand up Yusuke offered him. They wandered back up to where the group had moved; a set of tables at the top of the hill. Yusuke waved Ryoma up without him so he could go back down to the courts to get the bento box he’d left down there. 

He took the stairs two at a time and plopped down next to where Ryoma had opened the bento box one of the girls had made for him. Judging by the nervous look of the girl sitting next to him, Yusuke would guess she had made it for him herself. 

“Hey there,” he said to her as he sat on Ryoma’s other side. “You must be Sakuno. Ryoma mentioned you. I’m Yusuke. Good to meet you.” 

She had flushed bright red halfway through Yusuke’s introduction, and bobbed a small bow.

“Honored to meet you, thank you very much,” she stuttered out. Yusuke felt kind of bad for her. She didn’t seem to be scared of him, which meant the self-confidence issues were probably a constant struggle. Yusuke himself had never been afflicted, but he wasn’t completely heartless.

“So, you play tennis as well?” he asked as they dug into their lunches. 

“Only a little. I just started. I’m not very good...” she trailed off sadly.

“That’s okay. You’re definitely better than me. I don’t play at all.”

“Really?” she asked, sounding surprised. 

“Yeah, sports aren’t really my thing,” he said.

She smiled at him and said, “Me neither, but Tomo-chan likes it and it seemed kind of fun.”

“Cool,” said Yusuke before focusing on eating. He could feel the other kids, Ryoma’s classmates who he hadn’t met yet staring at his back. They seemed nervous about his presence. He decided to leave after eating. Sakuno and Momoshiro seemed okay enough with him hanging around, but he was quickly realizing since coming back to life that having everyone be scared of him was actively irritating.

Besides, given the way Ryoma was riveted to the players on the courts, his attention would be wholly diverted for at least a few hours. 

“H-how do you like your lunch?” Sakuno asked Ryoma, who was not paying any attention.

“Mada mada dane,” he said, clearly talking about the tennis game he was absorbed in, not to the people he was actually sitting with.

Sakuno looked crushed. 

Yusuke sighed and reached out to whack Ryoma upside the head.

“Ow!” 

“Don’t be rude; the lady is talking to you. You could at least listen.” Yusuke looked over at Sakuno, who looked ready to die. “Sorry about him. He never pays attention.”

Ryoma grumbled, rubbing the back of his head and glared at Yusuke for a second before turning to Sakuno and said, “Sorry. You were saying?”

“I-I was a-asking if yo-you liked your lunch,” she stammered out after a minute, squeezing her eyes shut, red as a tomato.

“Ah?” Ryoma said, looking down at his bento box. “Yes,” he answered and went back to eating. 

Man. He was not the sharpest tool in the shed, was he? Yusuke had the distinct urge to face palm. Sakuno was clearly pining like a twelve-year-old evergreen for Yusuke’s young friend, who remained totally ignorant of it. Yusuke didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. He decided to just ignore them and enjoy his lunch. Nanako was a good cook. 

“Oh,” Ryoma said, turning to Yusuke. “What are you doing from the eight through the ninth?”

It took Yusuke a few seconds to figure out what day it was and do the math. “In two weeks?” Yusuke asked and Ryoma nodded, “I don’t know. Probably nothing. Why?”

“My mom is taking us to Universal Studios in Osaka for the weekend. She wanted me to invite you.”

“... Really?” Yusuke had never been invited anywhere. He had never even been out of Tokyo before. 

“She bought your ticket already.”

Yusuke didn’t know what to say.

“You sure?” he asked, just checking.

Ryoma nodded. So, Yusuke nodded back. He went back to eating and tried not to think too much about it. It wouldn’t do to get all emotional. He would hate to turn into Kuwabara and start obsessing over kittens.

**Author's Note:**

> Hello there! If you've made it this far, color me suitably impressed. So far, we've mostly been living with the Tennis folks, but some YYH lovelies should be showing up in the next one so stay tuned!


End file.
